A lifestyle change took place when we moved to our smallholding in Wales, we are leaving behind the consumerism of life, growing our food, raising our meat, living our lives to the full, enjoying every day the highs and lows of country living, but not going without just doing it better.

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Wednesday, 9 May 2018

Eggs Eggs and Hatching

We have had a few daytime attacks on the chickens by a fox, one attack the fox tore open the netting on the run and had three of the chooks, this has depleted the numbers of our egg layers to 4.

I purchased a large incubator, this one holds 96 eggs, my other one only holds 9, this one also is on two layers with two separate heating fans, automatic egg turners that can be controlled independantly, humidity control and alarm, heat control and alarm and it counts down the days, to top it all it cost £51 with free delivery were my smaller one cost me £60 a couple of years ago

If I am going to hatch eggs I need to do them in greater numbers, if I set 9 I might get 6-7 hatch out of that two thirds would be cockerels leaving me with just a couple of hens.

I have 18 of our eggs in the incubator and 16 ducks eggs of various breeds I am aiming to get all the hatching over with in one go.

Yesterday I was candling the eggs to check for viability, this is one of the duck eggs and so far everything seems fine with embryo's developing, I will do another check next week and eliminate any that dont look right.

I have had a load of pallet collars arrive some of which will be used to make brooders while they are under heat.

I am also going to be trying out nipple drinkers with the chicks.

I am also going to try a heating plate in one brooder and the heat lamp in the other.

next thing to do is to get some more Ross Cobb meat chicks and raise those at the same time getting all the hatching and raising over with in one go.

We have had one hatching

The doves who are still living in the safety of the fruit cage started to nest again

Here is another ugly dodo chick a week old I do think doves produce ugly chicks and have awful messy nests.

We do have plans afoot to move the Doves will tell you about it as it happens.